Pokemon Haunted Forest
by The Next Metarex
Summary: Three friends begin their Pokemon journey. But instead of going along normal routes and battling for badges, they head into a forest looking for rare and unusual Pokemon. A forest people say is haunted.
1. Chapter 1

POKEMON HAUNTED FOREST

Chapter One

Steel ran out of his house. Today he was getting his first Pokemon and starting on his Pokemon journey. He hurried to his friend, Flora's house and knocked on the door. He knocked and knocked.

Flora opened the door. She was still in her pajamas. She stood there, rubbing her eyes and yawning. "What's the deal? I was still asleep!"

"Did you forget what today is?" Steel asked her. "We're getting our first Pokemon!"

Flora woke up fast. "It's today? Why didn't you tell me! Let's go!" She started running down her yard. Then she stopped and ran back to her front steps. She kicked Steel in the shin. "Why didn't you tell me I'm still in my pajamas?"

Steel grabbed his leg. "Ow! You're dangerous!" Flora answered by slamming the door in his face.

It seemed like hours before Flora came out dressed. She ran past Steel. "Slow poke! What are you waiting for?"

Steel ran after her. She was crazy, but she was one of his best friends. Actually his best friend now. Ever since…

Steel noticed where she was going. "Hey!" he said. "You're not going to…"

"Of course we're going to pick up Cloud!" Flora said not looking at him. "He's our friend!"

"He used to be," Steel said. "But he doesn't talk to us much anymore."

"That's beside the point," Flora said. "We can't go on our adventure without Cloud!"

"He might not even want to go," Steel said as they approached a house painted orange. There was a skull in one window. "He's so weird now!"

"I don't care!" Flora said, running up the front steps and knocking on the door. "He needs to get there in time to get his Pokemon!"

"He said he didn't need to get one," Steel told her, walking up the steps. "He has one you know…"

Flora stuck out her tongue. "Bleh! Don't remind me! But he wouldn't take that thing on his journey! He just wouldn't!" She knocked on the door.

The door was opened by a glowing ball with a face on it. "Eeeeek!" Flora cried, jumping into Steel's arms.

The ball grinned at them. "Gastly!" it said.

Cloud stepped into the doorway. He had black hair and black eyes. He was wearing a black t-shirt and black pants with black shoes. "Oh, it's you two," he said in a creepy voice. "What do you want?"

"We-we're going on our P-Pokemon adventure today," Flora said. She noticed Steel was holding her and hit him. "Let me down, stupid!"

"Hey!" Steel yelled, putting her down, "You jumped into my arms you know!"

"Oh be quiet!" Flora said. "Come on, Cloud! We want to get there in time to pick good Pokemon to start!"

Cloud looked at her. "I already have a starter Pokemon," he said like she was stupid. "Gastly."

"Gastly!" the ball with eyes said, nodding.

"You aren't serious!" Flora said. "It'll make people think you're…"

"Weird?" Cloud said, grinning funny at her. "But I am weird. Don't you think so, Steel?"

Steel looked at Gastly then at Cloud. "Uh…why would you say that?"

Cloud laughed. It was a creepy laugh. "I'll go with you, but I'll stick with Gastly."

Flora got in his face. "You're going to make people think we're weird too, hanging out with you!"

Gastly licked her. Flora fell over. Steel caught her or she would have fallen down the stairs.

Cloud looked at Gastly. "Now she's paralyzed." Gastly grinned at him. Cloud looked at Steel. "I guess you'll have to carry her until she snaps out of it.

Steel picked up Flora again. "I really don't think this is a good idea Cloud."

Cloud grinned fiendishly at Steel. "Don't worry, Steel. I'm sure this will be the beginning of a grand adventure! Shall we go?"

Cloud jumped off his front steps and started walking towards the Pokemon Center. Gastly floated behind him. Steel sighed and followed carrying Flora.

"I can tell this is going to be an adventure we'll never forget!" Cloud said.

And he was right.


	2. Chapter 2

POKEMON HAUNTED FOREST

Chapter Two

Flora had regained consciousness about halfway to the Pokemon Center. She showed her gratitude to Steel for carrying her that far by kicking and yelling, "Put me down!" Steel set her down on her feet, wishing he dared just drop her on the ground. But then she'd probably kill him.

"Had a nice little rest?" Cloud asked Flora, giving her another of his weird, lopsided grins.

Flora folded her arms and turned her back on him. "I'm not speaking to you, Cloud!"

Cloud continued to smile. "But you are speaking to me, isn't she, Steel?"

"Don't put me in the middle of your argument, guys," Steel said, wondering exactly why he hung out with either of them.

"The two of you have become so sensitive lately," Cloud said. "So high strung. You should both learn to relax like Gastly and I do."

"Gastly!" the ghost Pokemon said, making the motion of nodding.

"If we're high strung, you can't blame us," Fiona muttered.

A few years ago, the three of them had been inseparable. But then one day a bully had dared Cloud to go to an old abandoned house at night that was believed to be haunted. The next morning Cloud had shown up with an odd look in his eyes, a strange expression on his face…and Gastly. He had never been the same ever since. Flora and Steel had continued to be his friend, but it hadn't been easy. Cloud had picked up a huge interest in the supernatural at that time. He read nothing but horror comics, then switched to horror novels. He only wanted to see monster movies. The walls of his room were covered with vampires and werewolves and other strange creatures.

And always Gastly was there, following him around, grinning strangely, scaring off the other kids until only Flora and Steel would still have anything to do with Cloud at all.

This was obvious when they reached the Pokemon center. Kids there to get their first Pokemon smiled at Fiona and Steel but backed away when they saw Cloud, even though Gastly had vanished into his shadow before they'd reached the door.

"Good morning, everyone," a smiling woman in a lab suit said. "I'm Doctor Yew, and I'll be answering any questions any of you have before you start on your Pokemon journey."

"When can we get our Pokemon?" one boy yelled.

"Patience, please," Dr. Yew said. "Everyone will get a Pokemon before they leave here. Please raise your hand if you have a question."

Cloud raised his hand. The doctor called on him. "First, I don't need a Pokemon, since I already have one," he said. "But that's not my question. I only wanted to make it clear that I'm here because my friends asked me to come."

"That's very nice of you, young man," Dr. Yew said. "And where is your Pokemon?"

"Right here," Cloud said, as Gastly appeared in front of her.

"Gastly!"

Dr. Yew jumped. "Ahh! Ghost Pokemon!" She backed away a little, sweat dropping. "Uh…that's…very nice…young man…"

"Yes, I can see how happy you are to meet him," Cloud said, smirking. "But my question is, do you feel there are very many types of Pokemon that haven't been discovered yet? Such as more ghosts?"

"Well, anything is possible," Dr. Yew said, watching Gastly carefully. "Every so often a new type of Pokemon is discovered. There was a time when only one hundred and fifty were known. That's grown to more than three times that number."

"But finding new species would be unlikely if you went places most trainers go, like to different gyms, wouldn't it?" Cloud asked.

"Yes, that's true," Dr. Yew said, moving further away from Gastly. "The best way to find new Pokemon is to go where most trainers haven't."

Cloud nodded. "I thought so," he said.

The doctor did her best to ignore Cloud and Gastly after that as she talked about Pokemon. Finally came the moment the others were all waiting for, getting their own starter monster.

Flora jumped up and down so much it looked like she was about to wet herself when the doctor gave her her Pokemon. She pressed the button on the pokeball. A small green and white creature appeared. "Ralts!"

"Yay!" Flora cried, picking it up and spinning it around and around. "I love her! She's so cute!" When she let go it fell over dizzy.

Steel's Pokemon was a magnemite. It flew around him and attached itself to his watch. "Cool!" he said.

Finally they left the Poke Center and started walking towards the road out of town. When they reached the forest, Cloud turned and started walking into it.

"Hey!" Flora cried. "Where are you going? That's not the way to the next town!"

"Those woods are pretty wild, Cloud," Steel said.

"You heard what that doctor said," Cloud told them. "We're not going to find rare and unusual Pokemon going where lots of other trainers have already gone."

Flora looked around. "But I heard the forest is…haunted."

Cloud grinned. "That makes it even more interesting," he said.

Flora folded her arms. "I'm not going!" she said.

Cloud shrugged. "Fine," he told her. "You win your gym battles and get your badges. Gastly and I don't need any help, do we, Gastly?"

"Gastly!" the ghost Pokemon said. They went on through the woods.

Flora and Steel looked at each other. Then Flora said, "I hate this!" She started following Cloud. Steel side and followed her.

And so the three friends and their Pokemon entered the forest that was supposed to be haunted.

And it was.


End file.
